Chapter 8- Assessing Speaking

"If the child is not learning the way you are teaching, then you must teach in the way the child learns" - Rita Dunn

Today, we discussed Chapter 8 Assessing Speaking. Listening and speaking are two skills that interrelate. Has stated in the previous chapter that the four skills listening, speaking, reading, and writing can be isolated, however, isolating speaking or oral production tasks can be difficult without the use of interaction. I learned that speaking is a productive skill that can be observed. Combined with listening skills, oral production tests become more reliable and valid.

I also learned that there are five types of oral production. The first type is imitative an ability to parrot back or (imitate) words or phrases. The second type is intensive which request for a specific production of speech and read aloud. The third type is responsive which includes interaction and test comprehension, small talk, and greetings followed with follow up questions. The fourth type of oral production task is interactive is somewhat similar to responsive, however, interactive include multiple exchanges and/or multiple participants. Finally, the last type is extensive or a monologue. This oral production task includes speeches, storytelling, and oral presentations. Because I teach in the primary level, I would assess my students oral production and competence using the imitative and responsive tasks.

Speaking is definitely a dominant skill many people use, even sign language is a form of speaking. I have ELL students who enjoy speaking, yet I have one in particular that does not talk unless I am teaching her one-on-one. She is quiet and had me worried that she was not learning anything. One of my classmates mentioned in her reflection that although some students do not speak, does not mean that they are not learning. I would honestly have to agree. The ELL student that refused to answer in a group one day surprised me when I taught her one-on-one. “Jane” I would call her almost brought tears to my eyes when she was able to imitate my sentences, respond to questions, read and sound out words. Speaking is definitely a skill and when combined with the other skills much can be assessed and achieved.

The quote above somewhat relates to what I am experiencing with my ELL learner Jane. Many say there are many teaching methods, but the quote suggests that we take how the student learns and use that to help teach them. "Jane" learns best through drawings and gestures. When I am correcting a sentence I try to use hand gesture to help her remember the sentence and for sounds I show her my mouth movements. This quote is also inspiring because if we can engage and take the interests of our students and implement that into our lessons we will be able to grab their attention, teach them, and spark a new piece of knowledge.